Esterification of Cholesterol by Homogenates of Rat Adrenal Tissue

Abstract

Although the ability of the rat adrenal gland to esterify cholesterol has not previously been demonstrated, we have found that cholesterol esterifying activity is present in homogenates of that tissue. This activity was found largely in that fraction of the homogenate sedimenting between 20,000 and 85,000 ×g. The reaction required ATP, coenzyme A, Mg⁺⁺ and reduced glutathione for optimal activity, and could be abolished by n-ethylmaleimide or by preheating the homogenized tissue. The pattern of fatty acids esterified to cholesterol by homogenized rat adrenal tissue resembles the pattern found in vivo in the gland, while both these patterns differ markedly from that found in cholesterol esters in the sarum. It is suggested that a significant amount of the cholesterol esters of the rat adrenal is formed in situ.